By Ewah Chika.
One French Ligue 1 forward who was linked all summer with Arsenal is no one but Toulouse forward Wissam Ben Yedder nicknamed "Benyebut" French word for goal, who recently snubbed a move to Arsenal for Jorge Sampaoli's Sevilla last week for a mere €9 million.
This is not the first time Arsenal are missing out on their top transfer target after Leicester City forward Jamie Vardy equally did the same after deciding against moving to the Emirates instead opting to remain in the Midlands with Leicester. It is not only embarrassing that a young forward will snub Arsenal for a Spanish club that has failed to finish in the top four of La Liga since 2009, though the have won the Europa three times in a row since 2013, but it surely shows the depths Arsenal have fallen becoming the laughing stock of European football unable to attract star players . On the otherhand, Arsenal have been the busiest club on the pages of newspapers as the likes of N'Golo Kante, Gonzalo Higuain and Carlos Bacca , have all been linked with Arsene Wenger's side yet none eventually made the move to North London as of the time of this writing . Arsenal have long underachieved in the Premier League winning the trophy 12 years ago and playing perpetual second fiddle to the likes of Chelsea, Manchester United and Manchester City.
"He could have gone to Arsenal, who are one of the best. But Sevilla are also a big club and I think La Liga is perfect for him, because he is a technical player and very attacking ," Pascal Dupraz (Toulouse coach) told ESTADIO on Monday.
From the statement it clearly means that Arsenal's loss is Sevilla's gain as Sevilla quickly moved to replace the exiting Kelvin Gameiro who left for Atletico Madrid for €32 million. Ben Yeddar will compete with Argentine youngster Luciano Vietto who joined Sevilla on loan after flopping in Atletco Madrid last season . At 25, Ben Yeddar is still young with a lot to learn but judging from his exploits last season where he scored 17 Ligue 1 goals coupled with his five assists in 35 games for a below-average team like Toulouse, then it is safe to say that the French man will be a revelation this season in the Spanish La Liga. Jorge Sampaoli will relish the opportunity of working with the French man due to his top notch finishing, through balls and key passes which can split a disciplined and tight defence in a second. In total, the forward scored 63 goals in 156 league games for Toulouse after graduating from the club's academy in 2010. The striker is also Toulouse's greatest league scorer of the 21st century after surpassing Andre-Pierre Gignac's record at the club. In a transfer market where aged stars like Gonzalo Higuain and Kelvin Gameiro all cost £90 million for the former and €35 million for the latter (both 29) it is not only a bargain but a perfect business to sign such a star (Ben Yeddar) at a mere €9 million which is a give away judging from the current highly inflated transfer market.
With the likes of Vitolo and Ganso supporting him in midfield, Ben Yeddar is likely to storm the La Liga with goals considering his attacking quality .
However, just like every other player , Ben Yeddar's greatest flaw is his poor offside awareness and weak defensive contribution which is paramount to the style and system of manager Jorge Sampaoli who sets his team to press high collectively defending and attacking as a unit. To succeed in that system, Ben Yeddar will have to improve though this might take him little time .
However, all things been equal, Sevilla should consider themselves fortunate to have signed a forward better than the departing Kelvin Gameiro and who is highly likely to get better with them. Sevilla might have underachieved in La Liga for some years but after the transfer dealings this season, the Andalusian club is clearly on the road to the top,
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